Elderly neighbor keeps texting handy husband to fix her home issues until wife tells her to call the management company: 'Do not treat my husband like the help'

This husband seems like the kind of neighbor most people would appreciate. Helping a neighbor with small tasks out of courtesy is a nice gesture, especially when the person is elderly and may need assistance. But he helps because he wants to, not because he is responsible for maintaining someone else's house.

That's exactly what the elderly woman failed to understand. Kindness should not become an expectation. At first, she started asking him to fix things and offered a small payment. But over time, her requests became more frequent, and her sense of gratitude seemed to disappear. She assumed she was entitled to this husband's time and skills. 

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  • 01
    Handy husband fixing home issues as a neighborly favor.
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • "Enough"

    "Elderly neighbor keeps asking for my husband to fix stuff. Sometimes she pays him, but it's not really enough based on the job. She's starting to take advantage.We live in a townhome with a mgmt company to provide services as anyone may need it. My husband does small things as a courtesy to everyone (blows off leaves, tidy's up hedges)- it's exercise for him, but we have a landscaper. I'm triggered this morning, due to a 6:30am text from that neighbor with a pic of our shared backyard with standing water, telling my husband he needs to fix the sprinklers. It's Saturday. Do not treat my husband like "the help" to summon. I ripped her a new one, told her to call the management company & quit asking him to fix things. It was a so disrespectful. Plus, she went to me to ask him. She has his #."


    -OkMiddle5668
     

  • 02
    A man doing home repairs at an elderly neighbor's house.
    via Unsplash+ (Curated Lifestyle)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • Instead of appreciating his help, the lady began treating him as though he were on call whenever she needed something to be repaired in her home. There is a difference between asking for occasional favors and treating your neighbor like your personal maintenance worker. She was clearly taking advantage of the situation because there was a management company actually responsible for handling repairs like this in the community. Why call your neighbor when there is an official maintenance service available? In many townhome communities, those services are included in the fees residents already pay, so there was no reason to call her neighbor. She was probably too comfortable calling him directly instead of calling the company, knowing she could give him a small amount of money and still get the job done faster. The man gave an inch, she took a mile. 

  • 03
    Elderly woman texting her neighbor, asking him to do home repairs for her.
    via Unsplash+ (Getty Images)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • So, the wife was absolutely justified in stepping in and putting an end to this situation. That text message at 6:30 AM on a Saturday was completely out of line, and, understandably, it was the final straw. Sending a photo of standing water and telling him that he ‘needed’ to fix the sprinklers was not respectful at all. It wasn't a polite request; it was a demand. So the wife made it clear to the elderly lady. A favor is a gift, not an obligation, and her husband's kindness was voluntary, not a service. If she truly wanted a service, she already had the appropriate one to call: the management company.  

  • 04
    A garden sprinkler that needs repairing.
    via Unsplash+ (Lumière Rezaie)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  •  

    S*ckerforcats

    “Block her number on both your phones. He does not want to fix things for her because if something goes wrong, she will blame your or worse, hold you liable for damages.”

  •  

    EthereonCharm

    "Good for you for setting that boundary, she was treating him like hired staff"

  •  

    Top_Management7550

    "I feel that you did the right thing. As a former maintenence man, I'd be mad if someone took work away from me by requesting a non employee do it."

  • ChrisInBliss

    "Its fine to ask for help with some things like "can you carry this for me" etc BUT A BROKEN SPRINKLER?!?!? So entitled"

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